Tax hike for schools advances

The Broward County School Board wants voters to approve a property tax increase on the Aug. 28 primary ballot. The tax would help boost campus security and teacher bonuses. The levy would add $100 a year to the tax bill for a $225,000 property with a homestead exemption. The extra tax would expire after four years. The proposal needs county approval in June.

Broward County voters will be asked to pay more to help provide better school security and better pay for teachers.

The Broward County School Board agreed Tuesday to place the request on the Aug. 28 ballot.

The district is requesting an additional 50 cents for every $1,000 in assessed property value. For a homeowner with a $225,000 home and a homestead exemption, that would be about $100 a year.

It would raise about $93 million a year for the district.

The school district said the money is needed to pay for more school resource officers and campus

security personnel in the wake of the Feb. 14 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in Parkland.

Some of the money would be used for one-time teacher bonuses. District officials say they can’t provide annual raises because the tax would expire in four years, and there’s no guarantee voters would renew it.

School district officials say that without more revenue, it will be tough to increase teacher pay this year. Concerns about pay have been attributed to teachers leaving the profession and striking in other states.

“It’s a national issue. It’s gotten enough attention that it needs to be fixed,” Superintendent Robert Runcie said. “We want to be on the front end of getting that fixed.”

District officials wouldn’t say how much of the $93 million would be used for the different expenses, nor would they say how much the bonuses would be. They said it would be for both recruiting and retaining qualified teachers.

“At this juncture, no determination has been made,” school district spokeswoman Nadine Drew said. “If the referendum is successful, there will be ample opportunity for public input prior to any board action regarding the allocation.”

Officials said the funding would be enough to ensure every school has at least one police officer, with some larger schools getting more. Charter schools with at least 900 students would also be eligible for some money to hire police officers.

The proposal will need to be approved by the county Board of Commission, which is expected to consider the request at a June meeting.

The school district last asked county voters for a tax increase in 2014 to pay for an $800 million bond referendum. The program has faced public criticism because of delays and big cost increases for some projects.

The district still has $645 million of those bonds that have yet to go to the market. The district isn’t allowed to sell bonds unless it’s ready to spend the money, and most construction is delayed. Among the delayed projects are $100 million for safety and security, including fire alarms, and gates and fences to restrict visitor access.

Board members say they think the public will support this new effort, despite those problems.

“This is completely different than that,” School Board member Laurie Rich Levinson said. “These are operational dollars that affect the classrooms — the education and the teachers in those classrooms.”

School Board members said the new money is needed because state funding hasn’t kept pace with the district’s needs.

“The state drastically underfunds education,” Levinson said.

The tax increase would raise about $93 million a year for the district.